That’s down 29 percent from the Japanese automaker’s output in the same seven months of 2019 and 32 percent lower than its forecast in January for production during the period.
The source declined to be identified because the information is not public.
Analysts expect a slow and patchy recovery from the pandemic to curtail spending while social distancing may also curb the need for some to commute, dampening the need for new cars.
Its production in many countries ground to a halt in mid-March as governments locked down economies, forcing factories to close as workers were unable to commute.
The source said Toyota plans to keep May production at less than 10 percent of last year’s levels — after zero output in April — before ramping up to normal levels in July.
By September, monthly vehicle production will be outpacing levels the previous year, as Toyota catches up with lost output.
North America is a major production center for Toyota with the United States alone accounting for about 14 percent of its global output in 2019, making it the carmaker’s third-largest factory hub after Japan and China.